


A Walk Back in Time

by maddiecasket



Category: IT - Stephen King
Genre: Child Abuse, F/M, IT Chapter Two Fix-It, IT Chapter Two Spoilers, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-IT Chapter Two (2019)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-14
Updated: 2019-11-13
Packaged: 2020-12-16 08:43:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 15,241
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21033458
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maddiecasket/pseuds/maddiecasket
Summary: Eddie is dead. But, is he actually? He thought he was supposed to be. But when he wakes up in his bed suddenly 13 again, and 27 years in the past, what is he supposed to do? He supposes he needs to save his friends and Derry for real this time.





	1. A Surprising Wake Up

**Author's Note:**

> I'm really just dabbling with this concept. I don't really know how much of it I want to write. If people enjoy this I'll probably keep going though!

Eddie Kaspbrak's eyes shot open as the alarm on his bedside table rang in his ears. He hadn't heard this alarm in years. Why was he suddenly hearing it now?

Eddie shoots up and looks around at his childhood bedroom. Why on earth was he here? Eddie is a 40 year old man who's supposed to be dead. IT must be playing some sort of trick on him.  
  
The man slides off his bed and starts to walk towards the bathroom connected to his room, praying nothing scary will jump out at him. He walks slowly, noticing the lack of aches and pains throughout his body. Eddie also notices the lack of a giant gaping wound in his chest. This was beyond weird.  
  
Eddie pushes his bathroom door open slowly, and peeks inside. Nothing seems that out of the ordinary, except maybe that the shower curtain is closed. Eddie never leaves his shower curtain closed. He creeps slowly across the cold tiles, one hand stretched out to grab the curtain, and breathes out deeply as he grips the cloth between his fingers. He pulls the curtain back roughly, and sighs in relief that nothing is there to assault him.  
  
Eddie shakes his head lightly at his foolish thoughts. Of course nothing would be in the shower. Except maybe Henry Bowers, but Richie had killed him in the library. Eddie turns to the mirror and lets out an ungodly shriek as he takes in his appearance. He stumbles backwards, a hand clutched over his heart, and ungracefully falls to the floor.

Why is he 13?! Eddie is supposed to be a 40 year old dead man. He guessed this explains why he's in his childhood bedroom, but why would IT do _this _to him. What was the point of making him a child in his dying moments? Wait, did IT even do this?  
  
Eddie doesn't dare look in the mirror twice as he listens to his heart race and the sound of footsteps thundering up the stairs towards his room. Three faces appear in the doorway, each with varying degrees of panic crossing their faces as they take sight of Eddie panicking on the floor.  
  
"What's g-g-going on, Eddie?" Bill, 13 year old Bill, asks Eddie. "Wuh-w-w-what happened?"  
  
"Yeah, we heard you screaming all the way from outside," Stan replies nervously.  
  
"Um, yeah, I'm fine," Eddie gasps out through harsh breathes. "I just thought I saw something in the mirror. What day is it?"  
  
"It's Friday!" Richie answers. "It's finally the last day of school! Summer's gonna be great this year. But, um, are your sure you're alright, Eddie Spaghetti."

"Yeah, just my mind playing tricks on me," Eddie chuckles uncomfortably as he grabs Bill's extended hand. "You don't need to worry about me."

"Wow!" Richie exclaims. "Are those calming pills finally working? You actually let me call you a nickname for once."

"Yeah, that's pretty weird," Stan chimed in. "Usually you flip out."

"Eddie-bear!" The sudden voice of Sonia Kaspbrak calls from downstairs. "What's going on up there?"

Eddie's face scrunchs up in disgust at the sound of his mother's voice, and his friends look at him in shock. He hasn't had to deal with his awful mother in years. How could he have _not _realized if he was 13 his mother would be alive again?

"Jeez, Eds," Richie says, "I thought you loved your mom."

Eddie notices how forced Richie's statement sounds, and squints at him. Richie looks too mature to be 13. He looks burdened with an unbearable weight. Well, Eddie himself is too mature to be 13, and too burdened. Staring at himself in the mirror and seeing the prepubescent face from 1989 had scared Eddie more than anything Pennywise had ever thrown at the Losers. This had to be a dream.  
  
"I should get dressed then," Eddie starts carefully, "so we aren't late to school."  
  
"Of course you'd be worried about getting to school late," Richie snickers, and Stan punches him in the arm. "Come on, you know I'm right."  
  
"C-come on," Bill stutters, pulling his friends out of Eddie's bathroom. "L-let him get dressed. We'll meet you downstairs, okay?"  
  
Eddie nodded as he slowly stood up. He watched his friends leave, and heard them whispering as they walked down the stairs of his childhood house. He let out a shakey breath and went to pull his clothes on.

"Eddie what's going on?" Sonia cried as Eddie tried to run past the kitchen. She grabbed his arm, and hardened her grip when Eddie tried to pull away. "I heard you scream. Did you hurt yourself? Maybe you should stay home. Something must be wrong."

"Nothings wrong, Ma," Eddie stated, still trying to pull his arm out of his mother's grip. "I promise I'm fine. I just got startled. There's no need to worry."

"Now, Eddie, you know how fragile you are," Sonia scolded. "You get sick so easily. You need special care."

"No I don't!" Eddie screams. "It's all bullshit and you know it! Now let me go!" 

Eddie rips his arm out of his mother's burning grasp and races out the front door towards his friends. Richie grabs Eddie's arm gently and looks him up and down. A concerned frown is plastered to his face and he opens his mouth to say something, but Eddie just shakes his head.

He grabs his bike off the front lawn and smiles weakly at his friends. There's definitely going to be a hand shaped bruise around his arm, but that can be addressed later when it's actually a problem.   
  
Bill was the first one to pedal off, racing down the street and yelling in delight. Stan followed after Bill with a smile on his face, Richie and Eddie close behind. Eddie noticed his best friend glancing at him every few seconds, a worried frown covering his face. The smaller boy shook his head lightly. This couldn't be happening for real.  
  
  
Eddie frowned at the schedule he kept taped in his locker. How was he supposed to find his way around school today? It's not like he could just carry his schedule around. His friends would get so suspicious if he did that. They were already looking at him weird because of his bathroom freak out earlier in the morning, and his mom's random burst of hurting Eddie. He didn't need to add to that.  
  
"Whatcha doing, Eds?" Richie startled Eddie out of his thoughts as he frowned at his schedule.  
  
"Don't call me that," Eddie mumbles as he shuts his locker. "I was just thinking about something."  
  
"Want to tell me?" Richie says as he slings his arm over Eddie's shoulders. Eddie leans into Richie's touch and closes his eyes, shocking his best friend once again. "You can tell me anything you know."  
  
"It's nothing," Eddie looked up at Richie's skeptical face and laughed. "I'm serious, Rich. You don't need to worry. I'm fine, I promise."  
  
"Whatever you say," Richie ruffles Eddie's hair and laughs at his friend's scandalized gasp. "Let's get to homeroom before we're late."  
  
  
Eddie walks through the hallway with his friends, waiting for their conversation about Stan's bar mitzvah to ensue. Eddie remembers it pretty well if he's being honest. It was their first conversation of summer break. Eddie glances over at Richie, who seems to be lost in his thoughts, when Bill suddenly speaks.  
  
"H-how's it work?" Bill asks his friends.  
  
"They slice the tip of his penis off," Eddie says the all too familiar words. It sound like he's reading a script. Richie is looking at him weird, but says the sentence Eddie knew he would.  
  
"That can't be true," Richie replies quickly. "He'd have nothing left."  
  
Richie sounds like he's reading off a script too. Is there a chance that... No, no way is that possibly true. It's just Eddie's imagination.  
  
"Hey guys!" Stan calls out from behind them. "Wait up!"  
  
"Wait so, Stan," Bill asks his friend, smiling warmly at the slightly taller boy, "how does the bar mitzvah work? Eddie says they slice the tip of your d-d-d-dick off."  
  
"I read some stuff from the Torah, and make a speech and then suddenly I become a man."  
  
"That sounds boring," Richie responds.  
  
Eddie rolls his eyes at his friends' antics as he unlocks his bike and pulls it out of the rack.  
  
"Are we going to the barrens today?" Eddie asks Bill, then freezes for a second. He wasn't supposed to ask that. The others were going to ask about going to the quarry. Then Bill would say the barrens.  
  
"Y-y-yeah," Bill smiles at Eddie. "T-that's what I was thinking."  
  
"Great," Richie rolls his eyes, "I love splashing around in shitty water."  
  
Now it's Eddie's turn to roll his eyes. That's exactly something Richie would say. Richie sticks his tongue out at Eddie and smiles quietly. Eddie could have sworn he saw Richie's eyes water.  
  
  
"Why are we even here?" Eddie complains. "This is so disgusting."  
  
"Come on, Eds," Richie laughs. "We're ghost hunters now."  
  
Eddie rolls his eyes for probably the 50th time that day, and splashes into the disgusting water after Bill and Richie. It's still just as disgusting as he remembers it. Except this time he knows there's stuff a lot worse in the sewers than grey water.

His best friend turns around in shock and looks at Eddie sloshing towards him. A genuine look of surprise and confusion was on Richie's face.  
  
"You actually got in," Richie says quietly. "You know this is grey water right?"  
  
Shit. Eddie hadn't gotten in the last time he'd done this. His very extreme germaphobia had kept him at the entrance. God, he was fucking up a lot today. Richie hadn't even known what grey water was until Eddie had told him so. Then while the two bickered, Ben had appeared all cut up. They couldn't go in, they wouldn't be able to save Ben. Eddie had to keep them from going in further.  
  
"Maybe we shouldn't go any farther," Eddie says carefully. "These tunnels are really old. They could collapse at any time."  
  
"What are you?" Richie snorts, a serious look crossing his face. It's dark enough that Eddie barely catches it. "A risk analyst?"  
  
Eddie's eyes widen in shock. If that was a coincidence, it was absolutely insane Richie would pick that to say to him. Maybe Eddie could test the waters too.  
  
"Ha ha, very funny you professional comedian," Eddie watches as Richie's eyes go huge. The two stare at each other, their suspicions finally confirmed. A silent conversation passes between the two. They'd have to talk later.  
  
Suddenly, the sounds of splashing behind Stan startle everyone. Low and behold, the lovely Ben appears between the rocks, gasping in pain.  
  
"Holy shit," Richie yells, "what happened to you?"  
  
"We have to go to the pharmacy," Eddie calls out as he and Richie run over to Ben. "We need to help Ben."  
  
Richie nods and places a hand on Ben's back while Eddie helps him up. Eddie knew they wouldn't have enough money to get supplies, but Beverly would help them steal what they needed.  
  
And he was right. They got all they needed to help Ben. Richie did his annoying British accent. Bill awkwardly invited Bev to come to the quarry with them the next day. Then everyone went home.  
  
  
Eddie looked out over the quarry. He could remember this day so vividly. It had been so much fun the first time around. Eddie wondered if it would be just as fun this time around. It had already started the same. The group of five had spit loogies over the cliff edge, and Eddie had actually won distance for once in his life. The look of shock on Richie's face had been priceless.  
  
"W-who's going first?" Bill asks gently.  
  
"I will," Eddie calls as he runs to the edge and jumps as far as he can. He can practically feel all of his friend's shock that he had willingly done something that should have scared past him to death.  
  
Richie was the second one to follow, popping out of the water beside Eddie and smiling at him. He laughed lightly and looked at Eddie as he said, "I never thought I'd see the light off day where you'd jump first."  
  
Eddie smiled softly at his best friend, and swam over to him as all his friends and Beverly jumped off the cliff after them. This really was going to be just as fun.

The group of six splashed around and played in the water for hours. Joking and laughing together. It was a shame Mike wasn't here with them to have fun.  
  
After swimming for hours, they all piled onto the rocks beside the water's edge. Eddie crawled next to Richie and sat between his legs, a light pink flush burning his cheeks. Richie automatically places his hand in Eddie's hair, and rubbed his scalp carefully. Eddie leaned into his friend's hand, and tries to ignore the stares the pair was receiving.  
  
"Since when have you two been s-s-so affectionate," Bill asks the boys snuggled against each other. "You usually just b-b-bicker all the time."  
  
Eddie glanced up at Richie, who smiled softly at him, and said, "Since we've been adults."  
  
"You guys are just kids," Beverly snickered. "You've never been an adult."  
  
Richie and Eddie just smiled, and Eddie leaned further back against Richie, smushing his face against his friend's stomach. Eddie had nearly forgotten 13 was the age he'd gone through his gay crisis. He had avoided Richie like the plague right around this time. That was why they'd fought so much during this summer. Eddie vaguely wondered where this courage was coming from.  
  
Richie buried his fingers deeper in Eddie's hair, and unconsciously pulled the boy closer. He hadn't been able to tell Eddie how much he loved him before he'd died. Now here Eddie was, alive and making the first move. Who would have known someone as nervous and cautious as Eddie Kaspbrak would make the first move.  
  
Eddie looked up at Richie through his eyelashes and Richie swore he could feel his heart flutter. Eddie smiled quickly before burying his face against Richie's stomach again. Richie definitely had to be reading this wrong. Eddie is straight! He grows up and marries a woman for fucks sake. Why would he want someone as awful as Richie?  
  
"You okay, Rich?" Eddie whispers as he turns to face the older boy. He gently places a hand on his friend's face. "You're looking a little pale."  
  
"Hey," Ben speaks quietly, "I never thanked you guys for saving me. Things would have turned out a lot worse if you hadn't helped me."  
  
"That's what friends do," Stan smiles at the boy, "and you're our friend. Of course we'd help you."  
  
"Y-yeah," Bill pats Ben's shoulder, "we wouldn't juh-just leave you to Henry. You're just as much of loser as the rest of us. Don't worry, that's a good thing."  
  
  
Eddie dropped his bike on Richie's front lawn and jogged after him into his house. They'd decided they needed to talk sooner rather than later about being from the future. It was weird enough Eddie was here, let alone Richie too.  
  
"I'm happy to see you again," Richie whispers. "You were dead, and I just couldn't handle it. Mike and Ben had to drag me out of that awful cave. I didn't want to leave your body."  
  
"Did you die too?" Eddie questions. "I mean, that's how I ended up here. What about you?"  
  
"It was the night after you died," Richie starts as he plops onto his bed, Eddie quickly joining him. "I was so depressed, and as I was falling asleep, I wished more than anything to see you again. Then I woke up here, in my bed."  
  
"I didn't realize I was a kid again when I first woke up," Eddie turns to face Richie as he says this. "I thought Pennywise was just playing another trick on me. If this really is a trick, it sure is lasting a long time."  
  
Richie smiled and cautiously reached out his hand. He brushed a stray piece of hair out of Eddie's face... and then burst into tears. Eddie jolts upwards, and grips Richie's face between his hands. He hopelessly wipes a few tears off of Richie's face before he pulled Richie into his arms.  
  
"What's wrong?" Eddie whispers, cradling Richie against him. "Was it something I said?"  
  
"N-n-no," Richie stutters out, "I just can't believe I have you back. I took it the hardest when you... when you died. I didn't think I could handle finally having you back and then immediately losing you. You mean so much to me."  
  
Eddie crawled on top of Richie and buried his face in Richie's neck. He had no idea where this courage was coming from. When he had actually been 13 he'd completely internalized his feelings for his best friend. Eddie had convinced himself if he ever told Richie how he really felt his best friend would hate him. There was absolutely no way Richie wasn't straight. He was always making inappropriate jokes about women and his dick and shit like that.  
  
"I love you, Eddie," Richie blurts out suddenly, then immediately covers his mouth. "I mean... as a friend. Definitely not romantically. Not at all."  
  
"I love you too, Richie," Eddie smiles down at him. "Definitely not romantically though... I wish I'd told you a lot sooner. Definitely before I died, or moved out of Derry, or married that awful woman who's basically my mom."  
  
Richie smiled up at Eddie as he rambled and he placed a hand on Eddie's cheek. He froze and jerked his hand away before saying, "Sorry, I forgot that's your bad cheek."  
  
"It's not bad anymore," Eddie giggles. "We're in the past. Bowers doesn't stab me until 27 years in the future."  
  
Eddie smiled down at Richie, and before he can really think it through kisses Richie full on the lips. Eddie expected at least a little hesitation, and is quite surprised when Richie's arms wrap around his neck and pull him deeper into the kiss. Eddie can feel himself ruining his first kiss with Richie by how much he's smiling, but he can't seem to care.  
  
"Stop smiling so much you douche bag," Richie giggles. "I'm trying to kiss you."  
  
"I can't help it," Eddie smiles down at the boy underneath him. "I've wanted this for so long. I don't mean to sound cheesy but you really are the love of my life."  
  
"You know, I never really moved on," Richie mutters. "I couldn't remember you, but I could never fall in love with someone else. When I first saw you in that Chinese restaurant all of those feelings and fears came rushing back to me. I was so scared of loving you, and IT used that against me."  
  
Eddie smiles and gently kisses Richie, running his fingers through his hair. Richie has a soft look on his face as Eddie stares down at him. Richie pokes Eddie's nose and laughs when Eddie's face scrunches up. He leans up and kisses Eddie again, much gentler than Eddie thought possible for the boy.  
  
The rest of the night was spent with the two boys gently kissing, and trading 'I love yous' into the silent night.


	2. Wake Up Call

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so quick warning. This chapter has child abuse in it. If you're not comfortable with that please don't read this chapter!

__ Richie blinked the sleep out of his eyes as sunlight streamed through his window. The smaller body of his best friend was curled against his chest, breathing deeply. A smile crossed Richie’s face as he tightened his grip around Eddie. He couldn’t believe Eddie actually loved him. Richie never would have thought that someone as incredible as  _ Eddie Kaspbrak  _ would love Richie as much as Richie loved Eddie. 

“What’re you smiling about, dummy?” Eddie sighed as he stretched in Richie’s arms, then curled deeper into his chest. “What time is it?”

“It’s 7am,” Richie says as he leans over Eddie to look at the bedside clock. “God, the sun rises so fucking early during the summer.”

Eddie smiles into Richie’s chest and holds onto him tighter. Richie can’t bear to get up when Eddie is snuggled so cutely against him. It’s like a dream, finally getting to hold Eddie in an actually romantic and not platonic way.

“What do you want to do today?” Richie asks as he pulls his fingers through Eddie’s messy hair. “We definitely need to deal with the clown issue at some point. It’s not like we can ignore forever.”

“I know we can’t,” Eddie whispers. “But we might as well enjoy being kids for a little while. It’s not everyday you go back in time and get to confess your love you repressed for 27 years.”

Richie barks out a laugh and sits up, pulling Eddie with him. Eddie grunts in protest, and tries to prevent Richie from leaving the bed. Richie laughs again as he finally pulls away from Eddie and he pouts on his side. 

“Don’t worry, Spaghetti,” Richie pats Eddie’s head, “I’m just going to the bathroom. I need a shower. You probably do too.”

Eddie laughs quietly and stretches out over the covers. Richie smiles as he walks down the hallway. He grabs a towel out of the linen closet as he walks further away from his room. He can't help but feel nervous something bad's going to happen.

Richie turns when he hears quiet footsteps running down the hall. Eddie stops beside him and grabs his hand, a faint blush painting his cheeks. It really suits the cute boy's face.

"I don't want to be alone," Eddie admits quietly. "I just have a feeling something's going to go wrong. Can I… can I take a shower with you?"

"Of course you can, Eds."

"When do you think IT will show up?" Eddie practically whispers as he walks beside Richie. "He can't hide forever."

"Well I sure hope he does," Richie jokes, but stops when he sees Eddie's grim face. "Sorry. You're right though, he can't stay away for long."

"Huh-hey guys!" Bill calls out, running towards the walking pair. "I've been l-l-looking for you all morning. I called y-y-your house Eddie and your mom said you haven't been home since yesterday muh-muh-morning."

"Yeah, I spent the night at Richie's house," Eddie says lamely. "He got some new comics that we read together. I just never made it home."

"Your mom sounded pretty freaked out Eddie," Ben looks over at the short boy. "She said you haven't taken your medications for two days."

"Yeah, because they're bullshit," Eddie mumbles, looking up just as Stanley runs over to join the group.

"What's bullshit?" Stanley asks as he tries to catch his breath.

"My medications," Eddie says a bit louder this time, "they're placebos. That means they're bullshit. My mom's been lying about my sickness this whole time. Myra too."

"Who's Muh-Myra?" Bill asks in confusion. Eddie's eyes widen as he realizes his mistake. He looks over at Richie, whose eyes are just as wide.

"Just one of Sonia's sisters," Eddie tries, "that I really hate."

"Since when have you called your mom Sonia?" Stan says. 

Eddie just keeps fucking up. He needs to change the subject quickly before he gives too much away. His friends already seemed to have noticed Eddie's been acting weird. First it was the mirror, then screaming at his mom, walking into a nasty sewer willingly, snuggling with Richie at the quarry, and then he never went home. Not to mention talking about someone from the future and calling his mom by her first name.

"Maybe you should go home for a while," Stan offers. "She's probably really worried. You can always come hang out later. You at least owe it to her to let her know you're safe."

"Right, maybe I should," Eddie mumbles unhappily, turning on his heel and storming off towards his house. Eddie doesn't notice the concerned stares Richie sends after him, nor the quiet whispers being passed between Bill and Stanley. 

Eddie cracks the front door to his house open as quietly as possible. All he has to do is sneak past his mom and hide in his room for a little bit. Then Eddie can run straight back out and be with his friends. Maybe he should spend this time brainstorming how to kill IT.

Eddie peeks into the living room and notices Sonia's favorite armchair is empty. That's never a good sign, especially on a Saturday. What made this even worse was that the TV was off. Sonia had that TV running 24/7 no matter what was going on. She always said it would keep burglars away from the house, but Eddie never believed that shit.

Eddie screamed as a hand shot around his wrist and pulled him into the kitchen. His mother was furious. You could see the flames burning in her eyes as she crushed Eddie's wrist.

"Where have you been?" She chastised. "Do you have any idea how worried I've been!? You just disappeared without a trace! You didn't call, or leave a note. You could have died for all your poor mother knows!" 

"Let go of me," Eddie whispers, barely pulling his arm. Why was he so scared? "I was just at Richie's house. I accidentally stayed after 7pm. I couldn't go out after the curfew…"

"How many times have I told you to not hang around that awful boy?" Sonia shrieks. "He's a terrible influence! You can't play with him anymore, Eddie-bear! Do you understand?"

"I can hang out with who I want!" Eddie yells back. "You can't stop me! He's my best friend, so there's no way I'm just going to  _ stop  _ hanging out with him."

Eddie isn't prepared when Sonia's hand collides with his cheek. His eyes widen and he stumbles as far back as he can while his mother is still crushing his wrist. She let's go of Eddie and he tumbles onto the floor. 

"You shouldn't have said that, sweetheart," Sonia whispers, death glazing her eyes. "You have no right to talk to your mother that way."

Eddie stumbles backwards on the tile, trying to get away from his quickly approaching mother. Eddie screams for the second time that day when Sonia grabs his hair and yanks him up. Eddie smacks his hands against his mother's chest as she drags him by the hair through the house. He yells weakly, and finally lands a solid hit to her face. 

Sonia pauses, and releases Eddie's hair. She looks over him and raises her hand and slaps him again before he can react. Eddie screams and kicks her as hard as he can, trying to escape his mother's wrath. He makes it halfway down the hall before he collapses as a glass shatters against his head.

He groans as he grabs at his blood soaked hair. Sonia thunders down the hall after him, but Eddie is too quick for his gigantic mother. He slams the front door in her face and stumbles down the street. He definitely needs to go to the pharmacy. He can't let his friends see him like this. 

Why on earth would his own mother do this? Sure, she was a terrible mother, but Eddie had thought she at least loved him enough to not hurt him. As Eddie stumbles down the street, holding a hand to his bleeding head, he lets his tears fall. This was so fucked. This hadn't happened in the past. Eddie finally standing up to his mother had caused this. It's all Eddie's fault.

Eddie patted his head wound as gently as he could. It stung like no tomorrow, having to pour alcohol over the wound and pull out tiny shards of glass. He looked beyond rough. His right cheek was already starting to bruise, his wrist was definitely sprained, and his head wouldn't stop bleeding from a glass cup being thrown straight at him.

Eddie's quiet sobs cut through the silence of the public bathroom he'd locked himself in. He can't let his friends find out about this. They would absolutely flip their shit if they knew his mom had hurt him like this. Especially Richie. Who knew what would happen. Richie would probably try to kill Sonia. 

Eddie slapped a hand over his mouth as he heard the bathroom's door open and a few kids walk in. Shit. He knew those voices. It was Ben, Bill, Rich, and Stan. He shouldn't have locked himself in a public bathroom. Eddie scrambles on top of the stall's toilet so none of his friends recognize his shoes. He knows Richie will. 

"H-huh-how do you think Eddie is doing?" He hears Bill ask the group. "I d-didn't think he'd stay away for so long."

"Should we be worried?" Eddie could basically hear Stan twiddling his thumbs. "I mean, Eddie seemed pretty pissed off. Maybe we shouldn't have made him go home."

"I think you did the right thing," Ben reassures. "Eddie needed to let his mom know that he's okay."

Eddie tried to stifle his sobs as he listens to his friends' conversation. He looked around the stall and pushed open the window behind him. He had to escape before his friends found him. He quietly unlocked the stall he was in before jumping out the window, promptly landing on his sprained wrist. Eddie felt the breath be pushed out of his lungs, and he gasped for air as he cradles his wrist.

"What the fuck happened to you?!" Beverly shrieks as she rounds the corner to the bathrooms. "You look like you've been hit by a car!"

"I'm fine," Eddie gasps out, still clutching his probably broken wrists. Tears were flowing freely down his face as he struggled to breath. "No need to worry Beverly."

Beverly grimaced at the sight of Eddie's forced smile. She hurried over to him and kneeled down next to him. Eddie groaned loudly when she tried to sit him up, so she left him lying on the concrete. 

"How'd this happen?" Bev whispers, genuine fear caught in her throat. "Did someone do this to you?"

"It was Bowers," Eddie lied through his teeth. "I ran into him on my way home. I didn't want to worry you guys."

"Oh, Eddie!" Beverly cries. "You know you can tell us anything right? We always want to help you."

Eddie tried for another smile, but groaned when it painfully stretched the wound on his head. Beverly fussed over him as Eddie's tears grew thicker. He wanted Richie to hold him, not Beverly. Luckily or unluckily for Eddie, the rest of the Losers rounded the corner at that moment.

"B-Bev?" Bill questioned. None of them could quite see Eddie's face from where she was sitting. "What's guh-g-going on? Who is that?"

Beverly moved quietly to the side, and Eddie faintly heard his friends screams of distress. To be honest, Eddie wasn't completely aware of what was going on around him. He was vaguely aware of his friends yelling above him. He could feel a warm set of hands gently grab his shoulders.

His eyes rolled to the side as he looked up at Richie. Worry lines didn't look good on the taller boy. Eddie weakly reached up a hand and touched Richie's face to smooth out the creases in his forehead. He didn't want Rich to worry about him. This really wasn't a big deal. It was his fault after all.

"What happened to him?" Richie screeched. "Who did this to him?"

"He told me it was Henry Bowers," Beverly whispered, taking advantage of the fact that Eddie wasn't really aware of his surroundings, "but I don't think that's true. I think it was someone else."

"Are you saying his mom did this?" Ben whispers back. "That's pretty messed up, Beverly."

"Who else could have done it?" She shot back. "We sent him home. Why would Bowers be wandering around his neighborhood?"

The group looked around at each other, grim looks crossing their faces. If this really was the result of Eddie's mother, what were they supposed to do?


	3. New Fears

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's still child abuse going on. Probably will be for a while. Sorry if you don't like it!

Eddie blinked slowly as his senses came back to him. He was in someone’s bed, and his whole body ached. His head was throbbing, his arm pulsing, his cheek burning. Why did he feel so- oh right. His mom had beaten him. But it wasn’t her fault! Eddie had really been asking for it. He was the one who’d talked back. Oh shit, and he’d hit her too. Eddie definitely deserved it.

“Eddie?” A soft voice whispered. “How’re you feeling, Eds?”

Eddie turned his head slightly to search for the voice’s owner. It was Richie. Of course it was. Richie would never leave him, no matter how bad it got. Eddie reached his hand towards Richie, and the boy gently grasped it between his larger hands, rubbing a gentle thumb over the aching skin.

“Where am I?” Eddie croaked. God his voice sounded awful. 

“We’re at Ben’s house,” Richie started. “It was the closest from the park. We cleaned you up, and Bev got your head to stop bleeding. Bill bought a brace for your wrist and Stan is positive it’s not broken, just sprained.”

Eddie was hearing the words, just not really processing them. He couldn’t seem to wrap his head around the fact that his own mother had done this to him. Eddie just blinked at Richie, his mouth slightly open, before his hand dropped to his side. Richie’s concerned face went completely over Eddie’s head.

“How’s he d-d-doing?” Bill whispered through the crack in the door. 

“He’s awake,” Richie told the boy in the doorway, “but he doesn’t really seem to be aware of what’s going on.” 

Bill frowned at the boy laying across Ben’s bed. He looked like complete shit if he was being honest. Eddie was barely breathing, and he was grasping Richie’s hand like he would die without it. The more time passed, the more it seemed like this was caused by his mom. Everyone thought they should call the police, but they wanted Eddie’s opinion first.

Bill walked into the room and placed a comforting hand on Richie’s back. He was trying so hard to hold back his tears. He’d been crying so much recently. He’d cried when Eddie died, when he saw him alive, when Eddie told him he loved Richie, when he’d found him lying on the concrete after being beaten. Eddie didn’t deserve any of this. 

“You know he’s going to be ok, right?” Bill told Richie gently. “Eddie’s probably just in shock. It must be pretty crazy for him to realize his mom probably doesn’t love him. We just need to give him time.”

“I just wish I’d been there for him,” Richie whispers, the tears finally leaking out of his eyes. “I shouldn’t have let him go. He needed me and I wasn’t there.”

“‘S not your fault, Rich,” Eddie murmured from his bed “I still love you. Don’ worry.”

Richie squeezed Eddie’s hands tighter, and brushed his fingers through his hair. At least Eddie was becoming more aware. He was actually understanding the conversation going on around him, and was forming reasonable responses. 

“How are you feeling, Spaghetti?” Richie repeats.

“Everything hurts,” Eddie whines quietly. 

“I-I’ll go get some medicine and w-w-water,” Bill walks out of the room, leaving the two boys together. 

“Why would she do this?” Eddie cries as soon as Bill is gone. “I don’t understand. I already knew she was a terrible person, but I didn’t think she would  _ hurt  _ me.”

“I know baby,” Richie whispers as he gently rubs Eddie’s forehead. “I don’t get it either. I don’t know what’s different this time. This didn’t happen last time we went through this summer.”

“I think since I already knew how awful she was I decided to stand up to her,” Eddie says sadly, “and that was her breaking point. It’s all my fault anyways…”

“No, no, no baby!” Richie cries, grabbing both of Eddie’s hands. “It’s not your fault, sweetheart. You did nothing wrong. All of this is on  _ Sonia _ . Not you.”

“But I fought back…” Eddie whispers as tears slip down his cheeks. “If I hadn’t fought back she wouldn’t have hurt me…”

“You never could have predicted how she would react,” Richie tries. “For all you knew, she could have hurt you by  _ not  _ standing up to her.”

Richie climbs into bed next to Eddie as he starts to sob and pulls the smaller boy into his arms. Eddie was shaking violently as Richie cooed gently into his hair. He rubbed his hand soothingly against Eddie’s back, the other gently holding his injured arm. Eddie seemed to be calming down. Not entirely, but a little.

Just as Richie was about to say something, Bill walked back into the room. He was holding a glass of ice water and a couple of pills in his hands. His eyes widened slightly at the sight of the two boys curled up together on the bed, but he didn’t say anything. 

“I-I got the medicine for y-you, Eddie,” Bill handed the water and pills to Eddie and smiled. “Hopefully they’ll make you feel at least a little bit better.” 

“Thank you, Bill,” Eddie whispers, and buries his face into Richie’s chest. Richie coaxes the pills into Eddie’s mouth, and kisses his forehead when Eddie finally swallows the tablets. Bill smiles gently at the pair, and closes the door behind him as he leaves. 

Bill pads quietly down the stairs, and all his friends look up as he enters the living room. Stan walks over to Bill and gently grabs his hands. Tears are silently falling down his face, and Bill unconsciously reaches up to wipe them away. 

“How’s Eddie doing?” Stan whispers, gently wrapping his arms around Bill’s necks as his tears flow faster. “Is he getting any better?”

“He seems a little more aware of his surroundings,” Bill tells Stan, hugging his friend back. “I think he’s going to get better.”

“Has he said anything about what happened?” Ben asks suddenly. “We all want to know.” 

“He hasn’t said anything to me,” Bill starts, “but I’m sure he’ll tell Richie. There’s something going on between those two. It’s like they’ve lived a lifetime together.”

“You’re getting better at not stuttering,” Stanley smiles at the boy his arms are wrapped around. “I’m impressed.”

Bill smiles and pulls Stan tighter against his body, breathing in Stanley’s shampoo. This definitely isn’t weird. This is totally normal for two best friends. Nothing strange whatsoever. 

“Are you two going to keep hugging?” Beverly snickers, and the two pull apart, fierce blushes covering their faces. 

Richie looks up at the ceiling as he gently runs his fingers through Eddie’s messy waves. The smaller boy hasn’t talked for the past 45 minutes. He’d just snuggled against Richie and cried silently, shaking and breathing in tiny gasps. 

“I thought she was going to kill me,” Eddie admits silently. “I was so scared I could barely fight back. I’m still surprised I even got out of there. When she hit me the first time… I didn’t know what to do. I just froze up, and let her hurt me.”

“It’s not your fault, baby,” Richie whispers. “It must have been one of the biggest shocks of your life. Well, besides being impaled by a killer clown.”

Eddie smiles and somehow snuggles deeper into Richie’s side. He sighs in content, before he looks up at Richie and says, “I love you more than anything. You know that right?”

“I’m happy I do know that,” Richie smiles. “I don’t know what I’d do if you didn’t love me.”

“You’d probably never move on,” Eddie whispers. “I probably wouldn’t either. I would just grow up again and marry that awful Myra. God, why I ever married her beats me. She really is basically my mom.”

Richie laughs at Eddie’s words and kisses the top of his head. Eddie was such a cutie pie. Richie couldn’t believe how good he’d become at handling his emotions around Eddie. He barely cracked jokes when they needed to have serious conversations. Or when they were having a romantic moment they were able to actually be happy and live in it.

“I can’t let you go back to your house,” Richie mutters. “Who knows what your mother would do to you.”

“Where else am I supposed to go?” Eddie ask Richie. “What about social services? They’ll take me away.”

“I’m sure I could convince my mom to take you in,” Richie wonders out loud. “She’s always liked you more than me.”

Eddie rolls his eyes at Richie’s words, but smiled at the offer anyways. Richie was too kind to him. How was Eddie so lucky to score someone as wonderful as Richie Tozier? 

Bill pushes Stanley roughly against the wall, his lips colliding onto his best friend’s. He’d been dreaming about this moment for ages. Stan, without a doubt, was his best friend out of the group. Bill had been slow to accept the fact that he was in love with his best friend, but he was so glad he did. He was even happier that Stan reciprocated those feelings. 

Bill smiled, and Stan smashed his lips against Bill’s for probably the 20th time in the past 10 minutes. Bill pulled Stan closer to him by his hips, and smirked in satisfaction when Stan groaned quietly. 

“I love you,” Bill whispers in Stan’s ear. “I’ve loved you for so long now.”

“Me too,” Stan whispers back. “I love you, Bill. You’re incredible. You’ve always made me feel so special. Even when I feel the worst about myself, you’re always there for me.”

Bill’s face broke out into a huge grin, and he pulls Stan towards his bedroom. Bill gently pushes Stan onto his bed and crawls on top of him. He presses his lips back onto Stan’s and smiles when he wraps his arms around Bill’s neck, deepening the kiss. Bill is so helplessly in love with his best friend. 

“I can’t believe we’re actually doing this,” Stan gasps between kisses. “Especially when one of your parents could catch us. You know how they are.”

“To be 100% honest, Stan,” Bill mumbles, “I don’t give a shit.”

Eddie picks at the velcro of his wrist brace, not really knowing what to do with himself. Richie’s mom had agreed to let Eddie stay with the Toziers as long as he wanted, which was a fucking miracle. He’d been offered the guest bedroom, but Eddie already knew he’d spend every single night with Richie. But there’s no way he could stay here forever. His mom would step in eventually.

“Whatcha thinking about, Eds?” Richie whispers as he pulls Eddie into bed with him. “I can see those gears turning in your head.” 

“You know I can’t stay here forever, right?” Eddie mumbles, a sour look overtaking his features. “It just isn’t fair to your family.”

“Don’t start with that bullshit,” Richie says gently. “The only person who would ever protest about this is your mom, and we already know her opinion is complete shit.”

Eddie grumbled unhappily and picked at his brace more violently. Richie’s lean fingers pulled Eddie’s away and laced their hands together. Eddie sniffled, and a quiet sob choked its way out of his throat. He appreciated that Richie wasn’t giving him a pitying look like all of his other friends had been. Eddie didn’t want their pity. 

“I have to get my stuff eventually,” Eddie tells Richie, whose eyes widen unhappily. “I can’t just live off of your clothing, Rich. As comfy as they are they’re way too big on me. Besides, we need to find out how to kill Pennywise and get back to the future.”

“We defeated him after you died,” Richie says. “It didn’t feel like a victory though. We’d lost you and Stan, so it felt like a hollow win.”

“How’d you kill IT?” Eddie traces a pattern across Richie’s hand as he says this.

“We made IT believe he was small,” Richie starts, “and then we crushed his heart.”

“That is so unsanitary,” Eddie wrinkles his nose at the thought. “Please tell me you washed your hands.”

Richie laughs and pulls Eddie closer to him, placing one of his hands across the boy’s face. Eddie squacks unhappily and tries to push Richie’s hand off his face. Eddie has no clue when was the last time 13 year old Richie washed his hands.

“You’re so nasty,” Eddie giggles, finally pulling his friend’s hand off his face.

Richie giggles and pecks Eddie’s lips. His boyfr- wait. They’re technically not boyfriends. They never really talked about that. They were definitely acting like a couple, but they hadn’t officially confirmed that with each other. 

“Are we boyfriends?” Richie asks quickly, unnecessarily nervous over Eddie’s answer.

“I don’t see why we wouldn’t be,” Eddie smiles up at Richie. “We’re obviously more than friends. Would normal friends do what do with each other? Like kiss and snuggle?”

“Obviously,” Richie laughs as he pulls the smaller boy onto his lap. 

“What do you want to do the rest of the night?” Eddie mumbles against Richie’s lips.

“I have a few ideas,” Richie whispers, pulling his boyfriend closer against him.

Eddie stares straight at the Neibolt house as he walks down the street. He should be having his first encounter with Pennywise soon. The timeline had already been pretty messed up thanks to Eddie and Richie constantly messing up or completely changing the events of the past. 

Just as Eddie turned his head away from the Neibolt house, he heard the ancient door creak open. He froze in his tracks and waited for the voice of the Leper to drift through the air. But it never came.

“Eddie-bear!” The shrill voice of his mother called from the house. “Why haven’t you come home yet? I miss you sweetie!”

“No, no, no, no,” Eddie panicked. Of course Pennywise would know if his fears changed. Of course his biggest fear would be his mother.

Eddie stared at the Neibolt house, waiting for his mother- no, Pennywise - to appear in the doorway. Eddie screamed in pain when a hand shot around his bad wrist and pulled him around. It was Sonia Kaspbrak, except she looked horrifying. Her skin was melting and her teeth were rotten. Her bones were charred and black, and her muscles were decaying and gray. 

Eddie screamed again and ripped his wrist away from his mother, running through the gate to the Neibolt house. Why was his mother so fast? He’d never even seen her run in his whole life. As Eddie reached the back gate he turned, and there he was. Hidden behind an inverted triangle of balloons… was Pennywise. 

Eddie didn’t even give Pennywise the chance to speak. He bolted through the fence, cradling his wrist and raced towards his house. Eddie was so scared he didn’t even realize going to his house was a fate worse than kissing a leper. 

Eddie slammed his front door behind him, panting heavily. He noticed three things right away. The hallway lights were off, the TV was off, and his mother was towering in the doorway to the sitting room. 

“I thought you’d never come home, Eddie-bear,” Sonia said, almost too gently placing a hand on her son’s stiff back. 

“I’m sorry, Mommy,” Eddie whispers, fear lacing his words.

“Why don’t you come sit with me,” She pushes Eddie’s back slightly, leading him in the sitting room. “We need to have a very serious talk, sweetheart.”

“Yes, Ma,” Eddie replies, not even thinking about resisting. “W-what do you want to talk about?”

“Your terrible behavior, of course,” Sonia’s hand is becoming firmer on Eddie’s back. She pushes her son a little too roughly onto the couch, and Eddie lets out a small  _ Oof!  _ as he collides with the cushions and springs. 

“I-I’m sorry, Mommy,” Eddie mumbles, holding his aching arm away from his mother. “I didn’t mean to worry you.”

“There’s going to be consequences, Edward,” Sonia tells her son. Eddie’s eyes widen at the use of his full name. “You can’t be going around disobeying your mother and hitting me. None of this would have happened if you hadn’t been such a terrible child. You do realize this is all your fault, correct?”

Eddie nodded numbly, trying to comply with everything his mother says. He doesn’t want to get physically hurt anymore than need be. If that meant being meantally hurt, then so be it. Sonia was right anyways, about this being his fault. He really did deserve this. How could Richie just say that it isn’t?

“You’re not to leave this house without my express permission,” Sonia starts, staring at her son. “You will take all of your medications when you’re supposed to. You won’t hang around those awful children ever again. Especially that terrible Richard Tozier. I’ve had to tell you too many times that he is a terrible influence. But you never listen.”

“I’m sorry…” Eddie repeats, fear coursing through him. This is exactly what IT wants. “But they’re my friends. I don’t think I could ever stop hanging out with the people who make me happiest.”

Sonia’s nostrils flared at Eddie’s words and she promptly hits him across his bad cheek again. Eddie doesn’t even flinch or cry out. Maybe if he didn’t react, it would calm his mom down. But oh boy was he wrong.

The giant woman stood up and pulled Eddie off the couch by his hair. She dragged him across the room and up the stairs. Eddie refusing to react seemed to cause Sonia to be even angrier. She slammed his head against the wall, and screamed when Eddie didn’t cry or attempt to pull away. 

She threw him into his bedroom and slammed the door closed, locking it from the outside. When her thundering footsteps reached the bottom of the stairs, Eddie let his tears fall. He sobbed quietly as he crawled into his bathroom, and promptly threw up in the toilet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave a comment! I'd love to hear your feedback so I can make this story the best it can be.


	4. Hating Family

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back with chapter 4!

Eddie is vaguely aware of the room spinning as he lies with his head propped against the toilet. He doesn't really know how long he's been here, but he's been throwing up off and on every time he hears his mother move downstairs. It makes him sick just to think about the fact that he ran straight back to his mother after seeing Pennywise.

It didn't even make sense. His greatest fear was his _mother_. Pennywise had proven that true. Eddie could only guess that he was so used to running to Sonia and Myra that it was his first instinct, even though they abused him. 

Eddie remembers reading somewhere that people who grow up abused usually live their whole lives abused. God Eddie wished that wasn't true, but the facts were blaring in his face. He was living that cycle everyday of his life. When he was a child, his mother was basically poisoning him, and then Myra continued that cycle, and now that he's back in time his mother is physically abusing him. Who's next? Richie? It's always been the people he trusts most who hurt him the most.

Eddie knew in the back of his mind that Richie would never hurt him, but the overwhelming fear swarming his mind was cancelling all of his rational thoughts. What would Richie think if he knew Eddie was here? He'd probably throw a tantrum if Eddie is being honest. Richie wanted to protect him so badly, and Eddie had just thrown himself into danger. He had to get out of here before things got worse.

Richie paced back and forth in front of his friends, harshly biting his nails. Eddie should be here by now. Something has to have happened. Could Pennywise have gotten him? That's not how it happened last time, but hey, Eddie and Richie were already constantly changing the past.

"What do you really think happened?" Richie says into the air, his nervous pacing picking up.

"Richie," Bill starts, standing up and grabbing his shoulders, "we'll figure this out. But you really need to calm down."

"Whatever happened, I'm sure he's fine," Beverly chimes in. "Eddie's stronger than he looks. I'm sure of it."

"You have no idea," Richie says as a dark, sad smile crosses his face. "I'm going to go look for him. I can't just sit here and do nothing while Eddie is missing. I can’t lose him again.”

“Again?” Beverly says. “What does that mean?”

Richie’s eyes widen and he groans. Now all of his friends are looking at him weird. Richie sucks in a breath and pushes his way past Bill and runs out the front door. This was definitely the biggest fuck up between Eddie and him. 

Eddie pulls his head off his toilet. He could have sworn he heard something hit his window. As he pulls himself up off the floor Eddie groans at the throbbing pain in his head. His mom had definitely fucked up his head pretty good. All he could hope for was that he didn’t have a concussion.

Eddie peeked over his windowsill and, low and behold, Richie fucking Tozier was throwing rocks at his house. As soon as Richie noticed Eddie peeping down at him he smiled sadly. Richie gave a quick thumbs up and ran towards the front of his house. 

Eddie’s eyes widen when he realizes Sonia will see Richie, and with no sense of self-preservation, slams open his door and runs down the stairs. Eddie runs towards the front door, his feet pounding on the wood, and pauses in front of the door. What will Sonia do if she finds out Richie is here? What will she do to Eddie? What will she do to Richie!?

Eddie falls to his knees and cradles his head between his legs. As his breathing picks up, and he rocks back and forth, a pair of light footsteps pads towards him. Eddie’s entire body stiffens when a hand is placed on the small of his back. He hears a small sigh above him that is definitely a boy’s voice, not his mother’s. 

“Hey, Eds,” Richie’s soft voice says, breaking through Eddie’s conscious. “I’m going to get you out of here, okay? Your mom isn’t here anymore. I saw her leave.”

“I’m sorry,” Eddie chokes out, “I never meant to come back. It was an accident, I swear.”

“It’s okay, Spaghetti,” Richie whispers, slowing coaxing Eddie out of his scrunched up position, “I believe you. That’s just how things happen sometimes. You go back to bad places because you don’t know anything else. It’s not your fault, Eds. It’s just going to take time.”

“Thanks, Rich,” Eddie smiles sadly, as Richie pulls him to his feet. "Where's Sonia? Wait, you already told me that. Nevermind."

Richie wraps an arm around Eddie's shoulders and gently leads him towards the stairs. Might as well grab as much shit as they can while Sonia is gone. When else are they going to have the chance to do so?

"Let's get as much of your stuff as we can before your mom comes home," Richie ruffles Eddie's hair lightly, and pulls his hand away when Eddie flinches. "Is your head hurt?"

"Yeah," Eddie starts slowly, thinking over his words carefully, "she slammed my head against the wall today. Yesterday she threw a cup at the back of my head. I-I think I might have a concussion."

Richie sucks in a quick breath and pulls Eddie closer to him. That woman was as good as dead at this point. There was no way in hell Richie was going to let that godforsaken woman near his boyfriend… again. God, Richie needed to convince himself to not be angry at Eddie for coming back here. He just needed to believe his own words.

"I'll grab a suitcase," Eddie says as he pulls away from Richie's grasp. He pads over to his closet and pulls open the sliding door. He looks down at his shaking hands and closes his eyes. 

"I'll grab it," Richie says softly, before adding, "because you're too short. There's no way you could reach it up that high."

Eddie laughs loudly, and smiles up at Richie. He was so worried Richie would treat him differently because of this morally fucked situation, but he wasn't. Richie was being his usual funny self. He always knew exactly how to cheer Eddie up. Even when they were adults.

"I saw Pennywise," Eddie whispers, "and he didn't send the leper after me."

"What did he send?" Richie whispers back, placing Eddie's suitcase on the bed.

"My mother," A blank look crosses Eddie's face, "except, not my mother. She looked like she'd been rotting in a grave. It was disgusting."

"Sounds disgusting, Eds," Richie pulls Eddie into his side. "I wish I'd been with you."

"Well then IT might not have shown up," Eddie says almost inaudibly. "I wish you were there too. I was so scared, Richie."

"We're going to stop him," Richie says into Eddie's hair, "no matter what it takes. We won't let him survive this time. I promise."

Eddie allows a smile to cross his face before he pulls away from Richie. Eddie looks into his closet and starts to pull out whatever shirts are hanging up and throwing them towards his suitcase. He'd sort through everything after they got out of this hell hole.  
  


"Since when have you been a fucking fairy!?" Stan's father screams down at his cowering son. "I didn't raise you this way you disgusting child. Get out of my sight before you ruin something else."

Stan stumbles out of his father's office, holding back his tears. He hadn't expected his father to be accepting of his choices, but he also didn't think it'd be this bad. Hopefully Stan would be able to tell his mother before his dad got to her.

All Stan had been doing was writing a letter to Bill. He hadn't even noticed his father enter the room before the letter was snatched out from under his pencil. Stan had attempted to grab the letter before his father could read it without luck.

Stan had had to stand in shame as his father read through the most heartfelt piece of writing Stan had ever spent time on. As his father’s face scrunched up in disgust, Stan’s face had burned brighter and brighter shades of red. His entire head burnt from the bottom of his neck to the tips of his ears. 

Stan quickened his pace as he descends the stairs before slamming open the doors and running down the street. Hot tears of embarrassment course down his face as he thinks about the torn up letter sitting in his father’s office trash can. A love letter so full of emotions and vulnerability that Stan would never get to show to the one person who truly loves him for himself.

Stan is only aware that he’s running towards Bill’s house when he turns onto his boyfriend’s street. He’s about to turn around and run in the other direction when he suddenly hears said boyfriend call out to him. He freezes, and momentarily considers running away, but decides against it. 

Stan’s head hangs low as he wipes furiously at his never ending tears. What’s he going to tell Bill? He’ll obviously be concerned given Stan’s sorry state. As Stan gets closer to Bill he makes a point of keeping his tear stained face out of view.

“What’s wrong, Stan?” Bill asks as he meets Stan halfway down the street. “I saw you c-c-crying. Did something huh-happen.”

“You’re stuttering again,” Stan unhelpfully points out. “Sorry, that was rude.”

“It’s uh-okay,” Bills stutters, placing a gentle hand on Stan’s cheek. He smiles gently and wipes a couple of tears away. “Luh-lets go inside. I’ll get you some water.”

Stan hiccups and nods. He grabs Bill’s hand and squeezes it tightly. He’s glad when Bill squeezes his hand back. Bill lets go of his hand as they come into view of his house. Stan understands better than anyone that Bill’s father wouldn’t be accepting of his choices either. 

“Bill?” Stan stops walking, and starts twiddling his thumbs.

“W-w-what is it, Stan?” Bill has a concerned look on his face.

“Let's go to the quarry or something,” Stan suggests nervously. “Somewhere more private?”

Bill smiles and leads Stan down his driveway and onto the beaten dirt path behind his house. It had always been Stan’s and his secret passageway ever since they were little. It used to be overgrown with weeds and brambles, but over the years the boys’ feet and bikes had worn them down into a clear path. They kept a potted plant at the entrance of the path in a vain attempt to keep it hidden from their friends. Bill liked to think they were successful, but Stan knew Rich and Ed knew about and used it.

Bill slid the rose bush back into place, and immediately turned and slammed his lips against Stan’s. His eyes widen in surprise, and he melts against his taller boyfriend. It’s not often they’re able to steal moments like this. When they do, they live in constant fear of being caught. God knows this town was anti-gay.

Stan sniffles quietly and grabs Bill hand as he pulls away from the smaller boy. He pulls Bill close against him and smiles to himself as the two walk down the path. One of their childhood memories they’d created together would hopefully never die.

_ Bill sniffles quietly as he walks down the beaten path behind his old house. Stan and him had made this path together throughout their whole childhood. Bill had never thought he would walk this path alone, but here he was.  _

_ The man looks around at the path he’d walked a million times in his youth with his best friend. Bill wished Stan could be here. If Bill really thought about, he could almost feel the ghost of Stan’s hand around his. The smell of his almond shampoo. The peck of his lips against Bill’s.  _

_ Tears leaked down his face as he falls to his knees, cradling his head in his hands. Why did he ever leave Stan behind? Bill had never met someone so perfect for him, and he’d just gone and forgotten about his literal soulmate. Now he was stuck with Audra and he’d never see Stan again. Bill wished he could somehow change the past so he could have spent his life with Stan.  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave a comment! I love your feedback and responses! <3


	5. New Horizons

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A finally happy chapter!

Richie can’t help but glance over at Eddie every few seconds as they walk down the street towards his house. Eddie is dragging his suitcase full of clothes and valuables behind him, his head faced to the ground. Richie has never seen his Eds so depressed.

“Let’s do something fun,” Richie suggests suddenly. “I think we could both use it.”

“What do you want to do?” Eddie mumbles, not really listening.

“We could go to the carnival?” Richie says.

“I hate clowns…” Eddie whispers.

“What about ice cream?” Richie pulls Eddie against him.

“I lost my appetite hours ago,” Eddie sniffles quietly.

“Let’s go to the quarry then,” Richie rubs his boyfriend’s arm gently, and smiles down at him. “We could go swimming. Or we could sunbathe.”

“That sounds nice…” Eddie has his soft little smile on his face that melts Richie’s heart. 

Richie smiles happily that one of his suggestions stuck, and gently moves his arm off of Eddie’s shoulder. His boyfriend frowns up at him, and whines at the sudden loss of warmth. Richie smiles lightly and ruffles Eddie’s hair, being careful to avoid the injured parts. 

“Sorry, Eddie-Spaghetti,” Richie whispers, “but you know how unforgiving Derry is. I would never forgive myself if you got hurt because of me.”

“I understand,” Eddie says, “but I wish it wasn’t like that.”

“One day we’ll be happy together in a world where we’re accepted,” Richie mumbles to his Eddie. “Once this is over we’ll get to hopefully be together for the rest of our lives.”

Eddie smiles to himself at Richie’s words. Maybe everything would be okay, and they wouldn’t have to worry about evil and hate anymore. All Eddie had really wanted was to be with Richie for so long.

_ Beverly stares at Richie as he sobs on the concrete. They’d just pulled Richie out of the collapsing Neibolt house, forcing him to leave Eddie’s body behind. Beverly wasn’t one for finding love, but she knew true love when it was right in front of her. _

_ “We have to go back for him!” Richie screams. “We can’t just leave him in there! I need to save him! Eddie! EDDIE PLEASE!” _

_ Beverly shuts her eyes as tears drip down her cheeks. She can’t listen to Richie’s pained screams any longer. His wails of loss echo down the streets and into the air. Beverly can see all of the Losers crying. They hadn’t only lost Stan, but Eddie too. _

Bill splashes water towards Stan and laughs at his boyfriend’s famous scandalized face. Stan was giggling now as Bill splashes more water at him while he swims towards Stan. He dunks his head underwater and grabs Stan’s ankles, pulling him under with him. 

Stan opens his eyes and smiles at Bill. His hair is floating like a halo around his face, and Bill can feel his cheeks heating up. Stan places a hand on Bill’s cheek and kisses him quickly before swimming away from him. 

The older boy reaches after Stan, but he’s gone before he can grab him. An overpowering feeling of loss flashes through Bill’s mind. He has no idea where the feeling came from. It was like it belonged to someone else, someone who’d gone through tremendous loss.

Bill breaks the surface of the water and look around blindly. He spots Stan floating a few yards away and lets out an audible sigh of relief. Stan wasn’t dea- wait. Why would Stan be dead? Where the hell did that thought come from?

He swims over to his boyfriend and wraps his arms around Stan’s chest. The boy in his arms turns around to face him, and Bill sees a flash of a tired, 40-year-old man in front of him. Bill himself feels like a tired 40-year-old man. 

Stan frowns and places a hand on Bill's cheek. His concern must be obvious or else Stan wouldn't look so confused. Bill leans his head onto his chest, and sniffles quietly.

"What's wrong, Bill?" Stan whispers into his wet hair.

"I don't know," Bill says. "These overwhelming emotions just took over me. I don't know how else to explain it."

"You don't need to," Stan pulls his boyfriend tighter against him and lets Bill weep. “I get those all the time. They’re weird, and not normal, but it’s okay because we have each other.”

Eddie sniffs quietly, and rubs his nose. Richie was out of town, and he’d completely isolated himself. One of Richie’s distant relatives had suddenly passed and his family had forced him to drive down to Washington D.C. for the funeral. Eddie had taken to living in the clubhouse because no one else would take him, and there was no way in hell he’d ever go back to his shithole mother. 

Eddie looks at all the scraps scattered over the floor. Stolen food wrappers and bottles. Dirty pants, shirts, and underwear. Discarded pieces of paper that Eddie had been using to sketch. He’d been trying so hard to keep himself occupied while he was hiding from his friends. All he wanted was for Richie to come back.

“Eddie Kaspbrak!” An adult’s voice calls out. “Eddie, where are you?!”

Eddie’s head shoots up, his eyes wide. He’s never heard this voice before, and it’s making him nervous. He hears footsteps crunching through the leaves towards the clubhouse door. He hears a few quick knocks, and slowly approaches the door. He climbs the ladder, and pushes the door open.

“Eddie Kaspbrak?” The man, a police officer, asks him. 

“Yeah, that’s me,” Eddie whispers, carefully taking the man’s extended hand. 

“I’m glad you’re in one piece,” The officer chuckles lightly. “Do you realize you’ve been missing for two weeks?”

Eddie nods, and wraps an arm around himself. He’s fighting the tears threatening to spill out of his eyes. The police is smiling gently at him, and Eddie hates it. Only a smile that gentle was reserved for Richie.

“Let me take you back home,” The officer extends a hand again. “Your mother has been looking for you everywhere.”

“NO!” Eddie screams, yanking his hand away. He’s panting now, a crazed look overcoming his face.

“What’s wrong?” He asks, withdrawing his hand. “Can you tell me?”

Eddie looks around nervously, before pulling off his wrist brace and showing his injured arm. It’s a disgusting yellow and green in the shape of faded fingerprints. A look of understanding crosses the officer’s face. He nods sadly and stands up from his kneeling position. Eddie nervously grabs the officer’s hand, and lets the man lead him towards the forest path.

“I’ll get you somewhere safe, kiddo,” he says. “Everything will be okay.”

Eddie nods numbly, and grips the man’s hand tighter. He already knows what’s going to happen. He’s going to get taken to social services and be sent away. He’d never get to see his friends again, and Pennywise would never be defeated.   
  


Eddie picks lightly at a loose string on his shirt as he sits in his social worker’s office. She was a fairly nice lady. She was very kind, and she spoke softly, and she never made Eddie uncomfortable. Eddie thinks she said her name was Mrs. Cane. He couldn’t really remember. The last seven hours had been quite a blur.

“Hey, Eddie,” Mrs. Cane says as she enters the room. “I have some good news for you. Are you ready?”

“I’m moving out of state aren’t I?” Eddie whispers, tears already threatening to fall again.

“No, actually,” Mrs. Cane smiles brightly. “There’s a couple right here in Derry who’d like to take you. They’re fairly young, 28 and 29 respectively. Their names are Mel and Oliver. They live on the opposite side of town from your old home.”

“When are they going to get here?” Eddie asks, a small bloom of hope blossoming in his chest. 

“They’re here now, actually,” Mrs. Cane smiles brightly. “Would you like to meet them?”

Eddie nods, a nervous smile on his face. He stands up with Mrs. Cane and holds onto her hand as she leads him out of the office. The two people standing outside have huge smiles, and a few gift bags in their hands. Eddie’s eyes widen slightly as Mrs. Cane pushes him towards them.

“Hi, I’m Mel!” The tall woman smiles brightly. “This is my husband, Oliver. We’re so glad to finally be meeting you.”

“We bought a few things we thought you might like,” Oliver says gently, holding a bag out towards him.

“Thank you,” Eddie says quietly, taking the bag. He looks inside, and is surprised it isn’t something childish. They’d gotten him some really nice new clothes.

“We thought you’d like some new clothing,” Mel smiles at Eddie, and then looks at her husband. “Something not associated with the past.”

Eddie smiles to himself, and pulls the bag against his chest. He thinks to himself that he’ll really like these people. The two are looking at him expectantly, sharing nervous glances between each other. Eddie walks quickly towards them, and grabs Mel’s hand. A huge smile crossed her face, and she thanks Mrs. Cane before leading Eddie and Oliver towards the building exit. 

“Do you want to stop and get some food on the way home?” Oliver asks. “We could also make something at home.”

“I really need a shower,” Eddie says quietly, nervous for their response.

“Of course we can do that, sweetie,” Mel laughs, ruffling Eddie’s hair.

He giggles quietly, and holds her hand tighter. Eddie doesn’t notice the smiles being passed above him as he smiles. The two adults were surprised how good of an attitude the 13-year-old was sporting. They honestly expected a child who’d been abused to be incredibly nervous and skittish. They didn’t expect him to be so happy and physically affectionate. 

Oliver opens the back door of their car, and holds it while Eddie climbs in the back seat. Mel follows after Eddie and smiles at Oliver when the boy snuggles against her side. The slightly older man smiles as he closes the door and crosses to the driver's side.

Eddie's mouth falls open as his foster parents pull into the driveway of a very fancy house. Somehow he'd forgotten this was the side of town the rich, fancy people lived. Mel and Oliver didn't act or dress like rich, fancy people though. They seemed completely normal to Eddie.

"Welcome home!" Mel says happily. She opens the car door and pulls herself out before grabbing Eddie's hand. 

"We have a room picked out for you," Oliver starts, "but if you don't like it you can choose a new one."

"We haven't decorated it because we didn't know what you like," Mel tells Eddie. "We thought it could be a family project. You can pick a color for your walls, furniture, decorations. Whatever you want."

"After breakfast tomorrow we'll go shopping," Oliver adds.

"That sounds wonderful," Eddie responds quietly. A huge smile is stretched across Eddie's face. 

The two adults smile as they lead Eddie towards the front door. Oliver produces a key out of his pocket, and smiles at the two people behind him before unlocking the door. Eddie's mouth falls open again as he sees the inside of his new home. 

It's nothing like he expected. It only looks like a rich person's house on the outside. The inside is friendly, and welcoming. It's lit by gentle lamplight, and has worn in couches and furniture. There's a grand staircase with a well-used rug lining the steps. 

"Wow," Eddie whispers. He turns around, taking in the house. 

"Do you like it?" Mel asks, nervous look on Oliver and her faces.

"I love it," Eddie says, his eyes lighting up.

Mel smiles widely, and leads Eddie towards the staircase. She says as they walk, "I'll show you where the bathrooms are. You can take your shower, and then we'll have dinner."

Eddie nods happily, and grabs Mel's hand again. He looks everywhere as they walk, taking in the house. They have all sorts of artwork lining the walls. A lot of it looks homemade. Some of it looks professional.

"Do you guys paint?" Eddie questions, looking up at Mel.

"We have something called painting Sunday," Mel tells Eddie. "Every Sunday we break out our art supplies and paint in the backyard. If you want to you can paint with us this Sunday."

"I'd love to," Eddie smiles as Mel drops him off at the bathroom. 

She hands him a towel as he opens the door and looks around at the fancy bathroom. Eddie smiles at her before she turns around, and watches her descend the stairs. He realizes how lucky he is to have gotten such a good home.


	6. Future Changes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're starting to get glimpses of a new future!

“What do you mean you haven’t seen Eddie in TWO AND A HALF  _ WEEKS _ ?!” Richie screams at his friends. “You didn’t even LOOK for him!?”

“Of cuh-course we looked for him,” Bill stutters. “We looked e-e-everywhere for him. There were missing posters all uh-over the place.”

“But they all got taken down recently,” Beverly added. “That’s a good sign, right?”

Richie nods nervously as he paces in front of his friends. They all came over to Richie’s house as soon as he got home, and the first thing they’d told him was that Eddie had gone missing. Obviously he’d freaked out given Derry’s clown problem. 

“Tell me again everywhere you searched,” Richie says, his pacing picking up speed. 

“We went to his house,” Stan starts. “His mom really screamed at us. She’s the one who reported him missing.”

“We came here,” Ben adds. “No luck.”

“We also went to the clubhouse,” Beverly starts, “and it looked like he’d been there. That was about four days ago.”

“Do you think something bad happened to him?” Richie whispers. 

“I think he juh-just ran away,” Bill says. “He’ll turn up eventually.”

“I sure hope so,” Richie says as he starts to cry.

Eddie looks unhappily at the white cast encasing his arm. Mel and Oliver had taken him to the hospital to get his arm checked out, and it ended up being broken. Eddie guessed he’d become so mentally numb over the past month he’d completely blocked out the pain. The doctor’s suggestion had been similar, telling his foster parents he’d gone into shock. 

Mel and Oliver had been so kind to him since he’d started living with them. Eddie hadn’t gotten the chance to call or see his friends since he’d been here. His foster parents had wanted Eddie to stay home for a while and get accustomed to a quieter life. They had no idea Eddie and his friends would be fighting a killer clown all summer. 

“Hi, sweetie,” Mel smiles as she peeks into Eddie’s room. “How’re you doing?”

"Fine," Eddie walks over to Mel and grabs her hand. "What's for breakfast? Also, what are we doing today? Are we going shopping today? I wonder what the weather's going to be like."

Mel smiles at the boy talking a mile a minute by her side. She'd never expected to foster a child with so much energy. Eddie loved to talk about anything and everything, play games with Oliver and Mel, or do pretty much whatever they suggested. He was so open to anything they thought of. 

"Morning, kiddo," Oliver looks up from the paper he was reading and smiles. "We were thinking about going out for breakfast. What do think?"

"That sounds awesome!" Eddie cheers. "There's this diner in the city that I really like. My friends and I used to go there all the time when we were kids!"

"That's fun," Mel says as she ruffles Eddie's hair. "It's funny you remember something like that from when you more little than now."

Eddie nods quietly, his eyes a little wider than usual. Mel shares a look with Oliver. This happened with Eddie occasionally. He'd say something sort of strange and then freeze up for a little while. The couple had just assumed he was having flashbacks from a worse time in his life. God knows Eddie hasn't had the best life. 

Eddie's worried look doesn't wear off until he's in the back of Oliver's car, then he's back to his usual talkative self. Mel can see her husband smiling at Eddie through the rear view mirror. Eddie was talking about a new issue of some comics he'd read, and how it tied into other comics. Mel didn't really know what he was talking about, but Oliver did. 

Oliver parks the car beside the diner, and slides out of the driver’s side to open Eddie's door. He practically bounced out of the car. He seemed like he was vibrating from excitement. He grabbed Oliver's hand as he leads his foster parents inside. Eddie doesn't see the pair smiling behind him. 

"My friends and I always sit at a booth by the window," Eddie starts as he walks through the restaurant. "You get to watch all the cars and people go by!"

Eddie slides into a booth, and pulls Mel in after him. Oliver slides in on the opposite side of his family, and smiles at them. Eddie smiles back brightly, then pulls a menu up to his face. Oliver chuckles at him, and watches as his tongue sticks out in concentration. Eddie is just so cute. 

"Hi, my name is Brittany and I'll be taking care of you today," a young waitress says as she comes up to their table. Mel notices the waitress is sending weird looks Eddie's way. "Can I start you out with some drinks?"

"I'll have a Coca-Cola, please," Eddie says quietly. He's gripping Mel's hand tightly.

"I'll take a Pepsi," Mel says, squeezing Eddie's hand back.

"Water," Oliver finishes.

Brittany nods as she takes down their orders. She sends one last look towards Eddie before she walks away from their table. Oliver watches her lean over the counter and whisper in a cook's ear. Her face turns red and she walks into the kitchen when she sees him staring.

"What's up with her?" Eddie whispers across the table.

"To be completely honest," Mel starts, "it's probably because you were missing for over two weeks. The whole town was looking for you, sweetheart." 

"People just don't realize you were found," Oliver tells Eddie. Mel lifts Eddie's chin up and kisses his forehead. "We didn't want people to crowd you. We thought it'd be better to let you settle down first."

Eddie smiles slightly and leans against Mel. They'd talked privately about taking Eddie to see a therapist. Of course they would never take him if he didn't want to. Eddie had spent his whole life being ordered around by his mother. Oliver and Mel would do everything in their power to give him a choice for whatever they do. He deserved to have power over his life.

A group of kids biking outside catches Eddie's attention, and he gasped loudly. He crawls over Mel and races outside the diner, calling out to the children down the street. Mel watches as the kids slam the brakes on their bikes, and turn to face their son. All of them abandon their bikes in the middle of the road and race towards Eddie, enveloping the boy in their arms. 

_ Stan stares at the blood running down his arms. He should be dead with the amount of red running around him. He dunks his arms into the bathtub and watches as the blood washes away from white scars. If they were scars where was all the blood coming from? Stan looks back at the tub and gasps at the clear water.  _

_ He could have sworn the water had been dyed red with blood. Now that he thought of it, the floor had definitely been coated in a layer of red, too. Stan gapes at the cleanliness of his bathroom. Something just wasn’t right here. What on Earth was going on? _

_ A sudden knock on the bathroom door pulls Stan out of his head. He blinks a couple of times, and checks for blood again before pulling himself out of the bathtub. He calls out to Patty, “Just a minute!”, as he pulls a towel around his waist.  _

_ Stan pulls open the bathroom door and his jaw drops. A tall, handsome man is standing before him with a concerned look plastered against his face. Stan opens and closes his mouth a few times. He thinks he’ll say something. Maybe he should ask who this man is, but he thinks he might already know. Just as he finally opens his mouth to speak, the other man starts to talk. _

_ “I-I-I thought I shuh-should check on you,” an older version of Bill says. “Baths a-aren’t really your thing. I knuh-know you don’t l-like doing things that aren’t p-part of your schedule.” _

_ Bill laughs lightly and leans down to kiss Stan on the cheek. Stan’s mouth falls open again, and he blushes when Bill laughs at him. He rubs his arm slowly, cringing at the jagged scars running up and down his forearms. _

_ Bill gently grabs his wrist and pulls Stan’s arm towards him. Stan expects shock or disgust from the man, but gets neither. Instead Bill lifts his arm towards his face and  _ kisses  _ the ugly scars. Bill smiles up at Stan and pulls him against his chest.  _

_ “I remember when you got those scars,” Bill mumbles into Stan’s hair. “It was the summer we defeated Pennywise. You’d gotten really depressed, and your dad had started being a bitch over your sexuality. I found you in your bathtub, wrists slit and nearly dead. I’d never been so close to believing in God than the day you woke up in that hospital bed. I really thought I’d lost you. Doctors had told me you’d probably be brain dead from blood loss. It was so scary.” _

_ “I’m sorry…” Stan whispers, holding onto Bill for dear life. It doesn’t escape Stan’s gaze the rings wrapped around both of their fingers.  _

“Hi-ho, Silver! Away!” Bill yells as his friends and him bike down the hill close to his house. 

Bill smiled widely over at his boyfriend, who actually seemed to be enjoying himself for once. Ben and Beverly were chatting lightly as the group biked. While Richie barely seemed to be aware of his surroundings. He hadn’t been himself since he got back from D.C.

Bill swerved his bike in Richie’s direction and slowed down to his pace. Bill smiled as bright as he could in an attempt to make Richie feel a little bit comforted. The sad boy looks up for a second before turning away again. Bill faintly hears him sniffle.

“I-I’m sure Eddie is okay,” Bill tries. “W-wherever he is, he’ll b-be okay. He’s stronger than we think.” 

“I know…” Richie sniffles, “I’m just scared. I don’t know what I'd do if I lose him. Eddie means so much to me.”

“H-he really was a-always your favorite friend,” Bill says, laughing when Richie tries to defend himself. “It’s okay R-R-Richie, we all know. It’s kind of like that with Stan and I. We’ve always been super close. Closer than we are with the rest of the Losers.”

Richie nods a little and wipes tears off of his cheeks. He missed Eddie so much. He doesn't know how he would function without the boy in his life. Richie knew all of the Losers were trying to be optimistic, but Richie’s mind kept wandering to dark places.

Maybe Sonia had killed Eddie. Richie wouldn’t put it past the bitch to do that. He’d thought Eddie would know not to go back to his home. There had been enough evidence that Sonia Kaspbrak was a demon. 

Just as Richie is about to say something to Bill, a voice calls out, “GUYS!”, and Richie slams on his breaks. He knows the voice of his boyfriend anywhere. Obviously his friends do too, as they’ve all stopped and turned to stare.

The smaller boy is running down the street, waving a casted arm in the air. A huge smile is plastered against Eddie’s face as tears fall down his cheeks. Richie flings his bike down in the middle of the road and sprints towards his boyfriend. All of the Losers were close behind him.

Richie is the first one to collide with the younger boy, wrapping his arms around Eddie and lifting him off the ground. The rest of the Losers catch up and pull Eddie and Richie against them. The group falls to the concrete and cries against each other. They were finally reunited.

Mel and Oliver stepped out of the diner to look at the group of kids huddled in the middle of the street. They couldn’t even see Eddie in the pile. He was buried under the bodies of what the couple guessed were his friends. They glanced over at each other, and decided to not interrupt the friends. 

Mel pulled her husband over to a bench and sat down with him. She smiles at the kids in the middle of the street. The bundle pulls apart, and Mel can see tears streaming down everyone’s faces. Eddie is clinging to a gangly boy wearing glasses, who seems to be crying more than everyone else. 

Eddie looks up quickly and notices Mel and Oliver watching him. He smiles a little and snuggles against the boy holding him. The other boy is holding Eddie like he’s a lifeline. Tears are streaming down his face, and he’s shaking like a leaf. Mel wonders who the boy is.

“Where on Earth have you been?” Richie cries into Eddie’s neck. “I was so scared.”

“I have foster parents now,” Eddie says as he carefully brushes hair away from Richie’s tear-stained cheeks. “I got taken to social services. They’re really nice.”

“What happened to your mom?” Beverly asks.

“I don’t know,” Eddie frowns, thinking hard, “I never asked. I guess something must have happened to her.”

“She got arrested for child abuse and neglect,” Stan says suddenly. “I saw it in the Derry  _ News _ . She’s waiting for a trial.”

Eddie frowns as he takes in what Stan just said. He had no idea she’d gotten arrested. Eddie’s eyes widen as he realizes the whole town knows who his mother is. That means everyone in town knows Eddie was abused. He’d worked so hard to avoid people finding out about this incredibly private horror. Now the whole town knew.

“Eddie?” Richie’s voices interrupts Eddie’s internal panic. “It’s okay, we’ll protect you. You don’t have to be scared.”

_ Richie stares out at the river through the car window. He’d just turned 17, and his parents had decided to move out of Derry, Maine and to Dallas, Texas. He’d never even gotten the chance to tell Eddie that he was in love with him. Richie had never even made it out of the closet.  _

_ “What are you crying about?” Richie’s older sister, Alicia, mocks. “Are you sad to be leaving Henry Bowers behind?” _

_ “Why don’t you just shut your mouth, bitch?” Richie snaps back. _

_ “Richard!” his mother, Maggie, screeches. “Don’t you dare use that language! Do you want to be sent to hell?”  _

_ Richie rolls his eyes with a huff, and pulls his knees up to his chest. He furiously wipes away the tears falling down his cheeks and squeezes his eyes shut. Richie can feel the bouncing of the car fading away, and then his eyes snap open. _

_ He’s sitting on a bed, in a room that definitely isn’t his. He looks around at all the artwork strewn around, and lots of action figures and legos. This was Eddie’s room at his foster parent’s house.  _

_ “You okay, Rich?” Eddie asks as he walks out of his bathroom, a towel loosely wrapped around his hips. “You’re looking a little green.” _

_ “Yeah, I think so,” Richie’s eyes are wide as he watches water roll down Eddie’s chest.  _

_ Eddie sits next to Richie on his bed, and leans his head up to kiss Richie. The older boy jerks away, and a deep red blush overtakes his face. Eddie’s eyebrows are knit together in concern and confusion. Richie realizes he must have hurt Ed’s feelings. _

_ Richie gently puts a hand on Eddie’s cheek and leans his face down. His lips brush against the smaller boy’s, whose are just as soft as Richie always dreamed they would be. Eddie’s the one who deepens the kiss, wrapping his arms around Richie’s neck and crawling into his lap. His eyes widen before he shuts them and falls against the bed with his best friend.  _

_ “What’s going on, Richie?” Eddie whispers against his lips. “You’re acting weird. You know you can always tell me anything, right? I love you.” _

_ “Nothing's wrong, Eds,” Richie mumbles happily. “I love you so much.”  _

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave a comment! I'd love to answer any questions you have!


End file.
